Synthesis of bamboo-structured carbon nanotubes and honeycomb carbons with long-cycle Li-storage performance by in situ generated zinc oxide

Bamboo-structured carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and three-dimensional honeycomb carbons (HCs) have been prepared by the reduction pyrolysis by metallic zinc of tetrahydrofuran and glycerol, respectively. Comparative experiments showed that in situ generated zinc oxide, serving as a catalyst or template, was responsible for the formations. Galvanostatic discharge/charge evaluation revealed that both the CNTs and HCs exhibited a long-cycle Li-storage performance. The HCs can deliver a reversible capacity of 257 mA h/g after 150 cycles at a current density of 50 mA/g. For bamboo-structured CNTs, a higher reversible capacity of 518 mA h/g is achieved after 390 cycles at a current density of 200 mA/g. This confirms the great influence of carbon microstructure on the Li-storage performance.